Tropical Trouble
by Rubious
Summary: Trouble seems to follow Ban and Ginji wherever they go, even on a tropical island.


Title: Tropical Trouble

Author: Rubious

Rating: PG-13

Sequel to _Good to the Last Drop _and _Ban's Bad Afternoon_

Pairings: Ban + Ginji, Paul + Hevn

Warning: humor, alcohol, shonen ai, sexual situations, violence, AU-OOC.

Disclaimer: Get Backers © Aoki and Ayamine. This story is a work of fanfiction and is intended for entertainment purposes only.

Note: Trouble seems to follow the Get Backers wherever they go, even on a tropical island.

/thoughts/

"This is the life!" Ban Mido remarked happily as he strolled along the boardwalk in the early summer afternoon. "Where else do you get paid for shopping?"

His partner, Ginji Amano, replied, "Ban-chan, take this job seriously. We have to find the salt shaker for Paul."

"Don't you get it? Haven't you realized it's just busy work? At least, we can enjoy ourselves doing it." Gesturing towards the sea, he added, "Just look at the sun, the sand, the beach, and the babes." His attention diverted by spotting a pickup game of volleyball, Ban stopped talking and sprinted towards the players.

"Wait up!" Ginji hollered.

The pair reached the sand court and called for the next game. Their opponents, bodies bronzed and athletically toned, in their late-20s, were once phenoms on the pro volleyball circuit, but had fallen upon hard times. "They're not hot stuff," Ban snarled when told of their opponents' background. "We can take 'em down easy. Ready, Ginji?" He crouched near the net while Ginji floated the serve.

The other team nodded to each other. As the ball crossed over the net, the tallest of the pair leaped, ruthlessly spiking the ball in Ban's direction. The ball thudded against his chest, leaving an imprint. The team high-fived each other and pumped their fists. The spiky-haired retriever grumbled, "Lucky shot,"

"We'll get it this time," Ginji said confidently.

On the next play, the opponents sent the ball out of bounds, scoring a point for the Get Backers. Then they proceeded to reel off a string of thirteen points.

Ban was feeling frustrated as the onlookers were booing their efforts. "Not this time, pretty boy," he muttered. The other player smiled tauntingly, enraging him. Seeing the ball descend, he raced towards the net, but felt a "pop" in his groin. He crumpled to the sand like a fallen house of cards as the ball landed softly beyond his reach.

"Game over," the referee announced.

Racing over to check on his injured partner, Ginji asked frantically, "Are you all right?"

Grimacing, Ban grunted, "It's just a strain." Several days before, he had incurred a groin injury trying to move the Subaru out of a "No Parking" zone to avoid getting a ticket. 1. The blond helped Ban to his feet. "I'll walk it off," Ban declared.

The pair shuffled along for five minutes until Ginji spotted a concessions stand. "I'll get you some ice for your injury," he said before running off. He returned licking a cherry snow-cone and offered another to Ban. The injured retriever pressed it against his groin, unaware that cherry syrup was dripping off of it down his leg.

Ginji spotted the red leakage and wiped it off with a napkin. "At least, you weren't bleeding," he remarked.

The Get Backers were standing next to the Seaside Bakery, which advertised the "best buns on the beach". Pointing to a sleek body lying on a towel, he observed, "Now those are the best buns on the beach. Let's check it out."

Ban sauntered over to the sunbather with the shapely rear. "Would you like some sunscreen rubbed on your back? Hearing a murmur that he took as a positive reply, he squirted some lotion on his hands and began to apply it to the person's slender back. He didn't pay attention to Ginji, who had struck up a conversation with another sunbather next to them.

He was lost in thought when a soft yet menacing tone interrupted his reverie. "Mido, move your hands away now." The dumbfounded Ban looked up to see Juubei standing over him.

"Why are you groping Kazuki?" he demanded.

"I was just putting on some sunscreen," the retriever sputtered.

"Don't you realize you're rubbing lotion on a man?"

"From that distance I couldn't tell," Ban retorted.

"You need to get your eyes checked if you thought Kazuki was female up close," interjected Shido, who had been standing next to Juubei.

"Mmm. You've got a gentle touch, Mido," Kazuki said sleepily.

Shido smirked at the sight before him. /Mido, you're asking for it this time. I'm gonna have a little fun at your expense./ He sent a mental message to any hermit crab nearby on the beach. Soon one tiny crab had skittered along the sand and slowly began climbing Ban's left leg.

Glancing down, Ban wondered what the ticklish sensation he felt prickling his skin. Thinking it was sand, he shook his leg, but the irritation lingered. Then he felt the crab's pincers and yelled, "What the hell?"

What's wrong, Ban-chan?" Ginji asked in a concerned voice.

"Ouch!" Ban swatted at his leg, hoping to dislodge the crustacean. "I've got a crab," he answered.

"Crabs?" Ginji stared at him wide-eyed. /How did Ban-chan get crabs? Has he been cheating?/ "Do you need a doctor?":

"No," he said adamantly. "It's one crab and it won't let go." Ban felt the crustacean move higher on his limb. He stomped his leg on the sand several times.

Shido was doubled over in laughter at Ban's plight. Even Juubei, who rarely expressed humor, was chuckling. Hearing the guffaws, Ban realized who the culprit was. "It was YOU!" he screamed, pointing at his rival, Shido. "Damn you, Monkey Boy. You're gonna get it."

"You're too easy a target, Mido. Serves you right," the Beastmaster stated, satisfied. A minute later, the crab released its grip on Ban's leg and fell harmlessly to the sand, skittering away before Ban could retaliate.

Ginji approached his partner. "Ban-chan, I think we better go. You're turning redder than a beet." Was it from being embarrassed or a bad case of sunburn? The blond put his arm around Ban's shoulder, but he recoiled from the stinging touch. "Too bad you used up all of the sunscreen on Kazu-chan. Let's find something for the nasty sunburn," Ginji said.

Brownie, the Mahalo Grill's chief bartender, welcomed the Get Backers as they waited for Paul and Hevn to finish their meal. "What'll you have, mates?" he asked in an Australian accent.

"Snake Bite," Ban said curtly.

Ginji arched an eyebrow. "Are you sure? Ban-chan, you know what happened the last time you drank those." Ban brushed off his partner's concern.

"And you mate?" Brownie asked the blond.

"Since we've been chasing salt al day, how about a margarita?"

"Comin' right up," the bartender replied as he turned to prepare the drink orders.

The retrievers settled down on a pair of swivel barstools. Next to them was a fortyish woman raptly watching the plasma TV tuned to CNN? "I'll have to wait another day to get my Anderson Cooper fix," she sighed. Turning to her left, she faced the Jagan-user. "Did I hear right that your name is Ban?" she inquired.

"Yeah," Ban grunted, not wanting to be bothered.

The woman smiled at him and resumed sipping her white zinfandel.

The bartender served them their cocktails. They nursed their drinks while waiting for their companions from the Honky Tonk to finish dinner. A waitress approached Paul's table and took their dessert orders. Brownie asked the Get Backers if they wanted to see an appetizer menu while they waited.

Ban declined, "We'll be back in a few minutes." He then motioned to Ginji that they should go confer with the Honky Tonk owner. "Let's get this over with."

The pair wove their way through the dining room to the table where Paul and Hevn were dining. Beaming with anticipation, Ginji announced proudly, "Paul-san, we're back. I think we found what you were looking for," as he and Ban stood before the businessman and the blonde.

"That's nice, Ginji. Can't you see I'm in the middle of an important discussion with Hevn right now? Show me everything later," Paul snapped with a slight brusqueness to his voice.

Ban suspected that Paul wanted some alone time with the pretty blonde and nudged his partner that they should go, but Ginji would not be deterred. Hevn smiled warmly at the retrievers and then at her dinner companion. "Paul, let's hear 'em out. The boys must've been productive while searching for your lost shaker of salt."

"More like a wild goose chase," Ban muttered.

"You have five minutes," Paul said sternly.

As Ginji checked the various pockets of his cargo shorts and vest for his finds, the band's sultry vocalist sang a line from "Margaritaville, "_Nobody was to blame." _Ginji plucked several shakers from his pockets and plunked them down on the table before Paul. One was a matching set shaped like lighthouses while another pair was fashioned from miniature conch shells. Penguin and Elvis shakers rounded out the collection.

"Paul-san, are any of these the right ones?" Ginji asked hopefully.

As Ginji made his presentation, Paul glanced over at Hevn to gage her reaction. She nodded and smiled mischievously.

/Was she in on this charade?/ Paul just wanted to have a nice romantic dinner and not a show-and-tell session with the deadbeat retrievers. "Ginji, could you show me the rest later? Hevn and I are in the middle of dinner and planning the remainder of our evening together. Why don't you two go out to the bar and enjoy the night air?" he requested politely.

Ginji looked crestfallen. "But, but…"

Ban whispered to Ginji, ""Yeah, we know what they wanna talk about. C'mon, Ginji." The bespectacled teen pulled his partner away from the table as he hastily gathered up the shakers.

"Ban-chan," Ginji protested feebly. It didn't occur to him that the two adults would engage in anything extracurricular. Before leaving the table, he asked Paul, "Would you please take some time later to look at everything?"

Paul nodded, noting the Get Backer's pleading brown eyes. "Tomorrow morning after breakfast. We'll discuss this before Hevn and I attend the auction."

Ginji's face brightened. "Thank you, Paul-san," he replied cheerfully as he departed with Ban towards the patio bar.

At the table, Paul wondered if the evening would have any further interruptions. The good-natured ribbing by the restaurateur over his appearance and then Ginji's insistence on showing him the shakers had put a damper on his expectations for the dinner. Here he was spending time with the attractive blonde, exploring the possibility of laying the framework for a romantic rendezvous. He viewed Hevn as an equal on the professional level, but did want to venture further on a personal level?

As the retrievers exited the dining room, Ban accidentally bumped into the server pushing the dessert cart. The contact sent the young waiter sprawling and the cart careening towards Paul and Hevn. The businessman stood up to protect the woman from the runaway cart. Paul blocked its path, but the collision sent fruit tarts and a pitcher of sangria splattering all over his clothes.

"Today is not my day," he bemoaned.

"Thanks for the save, but, you know I could've handled that myself," she said appreciatively. By no means was Hevn a damsel-in-distress type. She didn't get to her present position just by being a pretty face. The classy intermediary had a keen business sense. Chuckling, she added, "I bet you're gonna add your laundry bill to their tab."

'Of course," Paul sighed. Looking down at his damaged outfit, he remarked, "Out damned spot."

Reaching into her cleavage, Hevn pulled out a stain remover pen. "Use this before the stain sets or it'll never come out."

Thanking her, Paul retreated to the bathroom to do some emergency laundry. On his way, he wondered what else she kept in the space.

Ten minutes later, on the Mahalo Grill's outdoor deck, the Get Backers had settled in at the patio bar, waiting for the tempura-battered shrimp appetizer. "Ban-chan, Paul isn't too happy with us, ne?" Ginji stated softly.

"Score one for Captain Obvious," Ban retorted.

"I really wanted to show him what we found on our shipping trip."

"He's got other things on his mind," Ban replied, stubbing out his cigarette in an ashtray. He held his hands out before him to simulate a woman's large bust.

"Hevn?" Ginji replied, puzzled.

"I know why he'd go after her. Hell, I'd squeeze her boobs any chance I could get. It's beyond me why Hevn would date a geezer like Paul," Ban commented.

"She likes older men?" Ginji offered.

After the waitress brought their appetizer, Ban nibbled on a battered shrimp. A soft-spoken voice chimed in, "Or more mature?"

The spiky-haired retriever whirled around to face the newcomer, insults ready to fly. His ire abated when he saw Kazuki had joined the conversation. "Oh, it's you, String Boy."

The string-wielder was accompanied by Juubei and Shido. The Beastmaster was intent on needling his rival, but deferred to his former Volt colleague.

Spotting the pink splotches of dried calamine lotion on Ban's chest, Kazuki commented innocently, "You're looking pretty in pink tonight."

"Yeah, sure," Ban muttered. He rubbed his chest to pick off the embarrassing blemish, only to succeed in irritating the sunburned skin further. Shido chortled at Ban's plight.

Ginji furrowed his brow at his partner. "You've only made it worse. I'll get some more calamine to fix you up," he said helpfully, but Ban waved him off.

Signaling the bartender for another round, Ban gulped down a shot of whiskey and insulted Shido, "Hell, only a blind girl would love you, Monkey Boy. She can't see what an ugly loser you really are."

As the tension escalated, Ginji tapped his partner on the shoulder. "Not here, Ban-chan. You're causing a commotion."

The bartender glanced at his watch and waited for his replacement to arrive. /Another drunken tourist starting a fight and getting his ass kicked. When he wakes up in the morning, he'll be wondering why he's got a hangover and why he's all bruised and bloodied./

His replacement, a slim man with slicked-back hair and a dapper demeanor, smiled when he saw the two retrievers. "This should be quite entertaining," he mused. He delighted in seeing the Get Backers cause mayhem, especially if it would lead to a confrontation where their power would be displayed.

A minute later, a barrel-chested crew cut man who was one of the Mahalo Grill's owners, a retired Marine, strode towards the patio bar. "Gentlemen and I use that term loosely, what's the problem here?"

Shido sensed the authority emanating from the no-nonsense man and knew he was one not to be provoked. "Just winding up a discussion."

Ban wasn't going to back down from a fight. /I can take down that old goat easy./ Confident, Ban stepped towards Sarge Culpepper. "Old man, butt out," he slurred.

When Culpepper didn't .flinch, the retriever moved to apply his Snake Bite grip with his right hand, not realizing that his reflexes were dulled by the alcohol he had consumed that night. Ban didn't have the strength needed to force his opponent down. Seeing the owner unaffected, Ban raised his arm to reapply the grip.

Culpepper warned, "Son, are you sure you wanna do that?" Before Ban could react, the retired Marine punched him in the gut, knocking the breath out of Ban. He crumpled to the tiled deck as if he'd been struck by lightning. Culpepper turned to Shido and advised, "I strongly suggest you take your friend outside and never return."

Ginji stared wide-eyed at his fallen partner. "Are you okay, Ban-chan?" He heard a groan in response. Shido and Juubei lifted the groggy Get Backer to his

feet and dragged him towards the beach.

Kazuki touched the blond's shoulder gently, telling him reassuringly, "We'll take care of Ban, so don't worry."

Emishi entered the deck just as the others were leaving. "Hey, guys! What happened? I missed all of the fun again. Hey, Shido!" he called out, chasing after them.

At the thatch-roofed bar, Ginji looked forlorn as Kazuki departed. "Won't Ban-chan ever learn?" he muttered. He leaned on his elbows against the mahogany counter, gazing at the bartender. "Ryu?" thinking the barman was the one who had served them at the Eden Hall several weeks ago.

Akabane smiled at the notion of the mistaken identity. His Transporter colleague, Magaruma, had told him that Ginji had confused Akabane with the Eden Hall bartender. "Would you like another drink?"

"One of those Lightning Rods I had last time," Ginji said.

Akabane took his time preparing the cocktail. He added a special twist by slicing a lemon, dropping it into the highball glass, and then adding a dash of grenadine. Slowly, a red "J" formed as the liqueurs mixed.

Out on the dance floor, couples swayed to the rhythmic tunes spun by Perpetual Vacation Radio's deejay. A few songs later, they slow-danced around the mosaic floor, while soft strobe lights flickered. Ginji gazed longingly in the direction of the beach, wishing for his partner. "Ban", he whispered."

Watching the electric blond bob his head in time with the tempo, Akabane whispered, "Listen to the lyrics, Ginji-kun."

Ginji paused his shaking and cocked his head to pay attention to the '70s oldie . "_You are the magnet and I am the steel." _As a chill ran down his spine, it dawned on him that the bartender wasn't Ryu, but in fact, the deadly Dr. Jackal. Ginji's face paled and he wished he could shrink down to cling to Ban for protection. "A-ka-ka-ka-ba-ba-ne," he stammered.

"Ginji-kun, it's fortuitous you recognized me," Akabane replied, smiling deviously.

"Why is that?'" Ginji answered, still in shock at seeing his nemesis.

"It appears that you and Ban have run up quite a tab at the Mahalo Grill in just one evening. Restaurant policy is that all tabs are settled each night," the deadly bartender replied coolly.

"I can't pay the bill. Ban has all the money. And he's gone!" Ginji wailed. "Maybe I can work it off?"

"You saw how Culpepper treats those that cross him. Do you want to end up like Ban-kun?" Akabane inquired.

Ginji blinked, knowing he had little wiggle room in this predicament. "What choices do I have then?"

Akabane leaned closer. "I will pay your debt tonight…" Upon hearing those words, Ginji sighed in relief. "But now you'll owe me instead."

"Can I think about this for a minute?" Ginji said frantically.

"Live now and pay later," Akabane said drily. "I promise I won't be as lenient as the Honky Tonk owner is. Do we have a deal?"

Reluctantly, Ginji agreed to Akabane's proposal.

Throughout the evening, Ginji pondered how to explain the situation to Ban or what further troubles awaited the Get Backers.

The End

Author's Notes

1. This is a summary of the events of _Ban's Bad Afternoon._

2. Thanks go to Enigma for some input and to Cat for some beta-reading assistance.


End file.
